Resources

Resources

Books

Some Jewish sources

There Shall Be No Needy: Pursuing Social Justice through Jewish Law & Tradition, by Rabbi Jill JacobsHow can we apply classic Jewish texts to today's pressing social issues? What obligations do we have as Jews to care for poor people, the homeless, abused employees, sick people, the environment, people who do wrong? A great introduction to fundamental Jewish ideas about social justice

Justice in the City: An Argument from the Sources of Rabbinic Judaism, by Aryeh CohenCohen argues that classic rabbinic ethical insights compel Jews to create in our cities communities of obligation. Another good book for people beginning to read basic Jewish texts about social justice.

Changing the World from the Inside Out: A Jewish Approach to Personal and Social Change, by David Jaffe How the wisdom of the Jewish tradition can help us build the inner traits of trust, patience, and compassion that will make our difficult and tiring progressive political work sustainable. A practical guide with exercises, mediations, and discussion points. A Jewish recipe to build your soul and save your sanity.

Revolutionary Yiddishland: A History of Jewish Radicalism, by Alain Brossat and Sylvie KlingbergYiddish-speaking labor organizers, Bundists, Socialists, and Communists committed themselves to struggle for an entirely different world, then fought Franco, Hitler, and Mussolini. Oral histories.

Criminal Justice Reform

when they call you a terrorist: a black lives matter memoir, by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele Feminist and civil right activist Patrisse writes about her childhood and adolescence in a poor Los Angles neighborhood. She tells us what led her to co-found Black Lives Matter and what happened next.

Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration, by Emily Bazelon Bazelon shows how the power and lack of accountability of county prosecutors has reduced fairness in the U.S. criminal justice system. She describes how can we reform prosecutors' behavior step by step.

Angels with Dirty Faces by Walidah ImarishaImarisha takes us into the lives of two incarcerated people who did terrible harm and asks "Now what?". What might redemption look like?

Start Here: A Roadmap to Reducing Mass Incarceration, by Greg BermanBerman lists recent U.S. city and state reforms in criminal justice that both political conservatives and liberals have supported. For example, experiments in diversion away from jail toward medical treatment, community-run restorative justice agencies that replace punishment, and eliminating bail. Because these experiments have appealed to both thrifty conservatives and compassionate liberals in a variety of states, progressives might succeed in introducing them to their own communities.

Locked In: The True Causes of Mass Incarceration and How to Achieve Real Reform, by John PfaffPfaff's empirical project shows that more people got locked up in the 1980's and 1990's mainly because county prosecutors changed their behavior. They sought and won higher charges and longer sentences. Prosecutors can build their political careers by running "tough on crime". County voters don't pay the price of their prosecutors' severity, because people convicted on those higher charges go to state prison, not county jail. This book supports the electoral strategy to focus on county DAs and replace them with progressives.

Chokehold: Policing Black Men, by Paul ButlerAfrican-American D.C. prosecutor Paul Butler believed in the integrity of the police and the courts until he himself was wrongfully accused of a crime. He saw police officers he had trusted lie on the stand. This experience shook him to the core. He quit the D.A.'s office and now teaches law at Georgetown University. An insider's view of which criminal-justice reforms should be our top priorities.

The Black and the Blue: A Cop Reveals the Crimes, Racism, and Injustice in Amierica's Law Enforcement, by Matthew HoraceHorace is an African-American author who worked for 28 years as a law enforcement officer, in federal and local agencies, in nearly every U.S. state. He discuess in detail many of our most infamous recent police shootings. He reveals the racism, violence, and tribalism inside law enforcement agencies that drive the anger of people of color who are being inexcusably abused.

American Prison: A Reporter's Undercover Journey into the Business of Punishment, by Shane BauerBauer got a job as a prison guard in a privately-owned, for-profit prison in a poor town in Louisiana. He kept a journal about his daily experiences with his poorly educated co-workers, with the inmates--deprived of decent food, books, medical care--and the slow poisoning of his own personality. It reads like a thriller. The cruelty is appalling.

Resisting White Nationalism and White Supremacy

Me And White Supremacy: The Workbook, by Layla F. Saad An unusual, psychologically deft way for white people to begin to see their white privilege and feel "activated" to challenge our oppressive system of white supremacy. Available: https://laylafsaad.com/meandwhitesupremacy-workbook

White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, by Robin DiAngelo Discusses white people's counterproductive reactions when someone challenges their assumptions about race, and how those reactions maintain white supremacy.

Fascism Today: What It Is and How to End It, by Shane Burley Introduction to development of alt-Right in U.S. and the broad-based anti-fascist practices that have been effective against alt-right, Neo-Nazis, the Klan, and armed militia groups.

Official Website of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe: http://muwekma.org/Today's Muwekma Ohlone tribe includes all the known Indigenous people who trace their ancestry from survivors of the Missions Dolores, Santa Clara, and San Jose. We occupy Muwekma Ohlone land.

The Ohlone Way: Indian Life in the San Francisco-Monterey Bay Area, by Malcolm MargolinDescribes the culture of the Native people of our area.

Nonviolent Action

Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict, by Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. StephanThis statistical project purports to show that nonviolent campaigns succeed in overthrowing oppressive regimes more often than armed struggle. What is most valuable about the book are the case studies of creative, nonviolent campaigns from all over the world, using techniques, tactics, and strategies that you might not have considered.

The Politics of Nonviolent Action, in three volumes, by Gene SharpStart with Volume Two: The Methods of Nonviolent Action. This book aims to be a complete list of every method every tried by nonviolent political activists, each method illustrated with at last one historical example: skywriting, mock funerals, sex boycotts, false documents, guerrilla theater, flipping opponents' employees, tax strikes.... Sharp has keen insight into the psychology behind continued, mass compliance and how we can weaken those habits. Fascinating, widely admired.

Fiction

The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas Gripping novel for young and adult readers, about an African-American girl in a mostly white high school who witnesses the police shoot an African-American boy. Teenage readers say it brilliantly captures high school life and teenage racial tensions.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, by Benjamin Alire Sáenz For middle school readers and older. Two Mexican-American boys in Texas discover the power of their friendship. Authentic teenage Latino dialogue and struggle.

Scholarly Articles Readable by All

"Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory, and Antiracist Politics" by Kimberle Crenshaw. University of Chicago Legal Forum, Vol. 1989, Issue 1, Article 8. Crenshaw invented the word "intersectionality" in this article, building on the insights of Black feminist scholars who published before her. In clear prose, she makes plain the urgency of recognizing and acting on intersectional oppressions. Available at: http://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf/vol1989

"Does 'Ban the Box' Help or Hurt Low-Skilled Workers?" by Jennifer L. Doleac and Benjamin Hansen. Economic researchers give us lousy news about "Ban the Box" laws. Legislation to help convicts find jobs after release from prison is associated with reduced job-finding prospects for non-offending black and Latino young men without college degrees. We need new ideas and determination to end racial discrimination by employers. Available at: https://www.nber.org/digest/oct16/w22469.html

Movies, Television, Videos

When They See Us (2019)Ava DuVernay's four-part Netflix mini-series explores the experiences of the Exonerated Five, the African-American boys coerced by New York City police officers in 1989 into confessing to the rape of a white woman in Central Park.

The Redemption Project with Van Jones (2019)CNN on Sundays at 9pm Pacific Time. You may also find it on streaming services such as Netflix, Vudu, or Amazon. Jones takes us inside U.S. prisons to see incarcerated people meet face-to-face with the people they hurt terribly. Deeply moving chance to watch restorative justice in action. Learn more: https://edition.cnn.com/shows/redemption-project-van-jones

Crime+Punishment (2018)A documentary: a group of young NYPD police officers blow the whistle on arrest quotas in their police department. Their supervisors told them to boost their arrest numbers by going out and arresting more young, black men.

13th (2016) The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits slavery, except as punishment for a crime. Director Ava DuVernay shows the connections between plantation slavery, convict leasing during Jim Crow, and modern mass incarceration with a close look at the "Angola Prison" in Louisiana, still farmed by coerced, unpaid, African-American men.

Bend the Arc: South Bay is part of a national Jewish movement to help build a country that lives up to our values of justice and equality for all.